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A haul of Viking treasure has been unearthed from a field in south west Scotland by an amateur using a metal detector. Derek McLennan, a retired businessman from Ayrshire, made the find in Dumfriesshire in September.

In total, more than 100 items were recovered, including armbands, a cross and brooches. Experts have said the discovery is one of the most important Viking hoards ever found in Scotland.

The items are believed to be worth a six-figure sum. Mr McLennan last year uncovered Scotland’s biggest haul of medieval silver coins. MORE (BBC Scotland)

On Novemeber 30, 2014, the Swiss will go to the polls to vote on a referundum “Save Our Swiss Gold” that, if approved, would require the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to hold 20% of its reserves in gold, repatriate any gold it holds outside its borders and cease selling any of its gold.

Will the Swiss gold initiative pass? What are the implications for the price of gold if Save Our Swiss Gold passes?

Switzerland is a country that is almost synonymous with gold. The idea of Switzerland conjures visions of vaults stuffed with gold buried deep in the Alps. Lately, however, Switzerland has been divesting a good portion of its gold. Gold as a percentage of Switzerland’s foreign reserves is just under 8%.

The “Save Our Swiss Gold” referendum is a ballot initiative spearheaded by Luzi Stamm, Vice President of the Swiss People’s Party, (Schweizerische Volkspartei or SVP) that would require the Bank of Switzerland to:

– hold at least 20% of its reserves in gold;– repatriate of all of its gold currently held outside its borders; and– ban selling any of its gold…MORE (Smaulgld.com)

ONE thousand nine hundred years ago, British warrior-queen Boadicea stormed a Roman stronghold.

Today, the tale of the last moments of one of her victims — a rich noble woman — has been unearthed.

Boadicea led the assault on the Roman capital of Britain in about AD60. Her tribal followers — enraged by the humiliating beating of their queen and the rape of her daughters — vented their full fury on the occupants of the newly founded frontier city of Colchester.

The price they extracted from their Roman overlords was brutal.

As the savage tribesmen and women surged over the walls, one wealthy Roman woman hid her personal collection of jewellery. She hoped it would stay safe while she fled to the town’s temple for refuge…MORE (News.com.au)

Forbes 9/04/2014: A 60,000-square-foot Beaux Arts mansion with a 22-carat gold-leaf entrance gate has just been listed for $139 million, making it the new most expensive home officially on the market in America. And the house is not even fully built.

Le Palais Royal, as the 11-bedroom, 17-bath new mega-mansion is being called, was the pet project of a very wealthy owner who has since decided to abandon his dream palace in order to travel the world on his yacht. The massive home lies on 4.4 acres on Millionaires Mile in Hillsboro Beach, Florida, halfway between Fort Lauderdale and Boca Raton. It’s still under construction, scheduled to be complete by the end of next year, says listing agent William P.D. Pierce of Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate. He would not disclose the owner’s identity…MORE (Forbes)

The operator of the London gold price benchmark said on Thursday it formally started the process to find a new administrator for the century-old mechanism that will halt the telephone call that four institutions enter twice a day in favour of an electronic solution.

The London Gold Market Fixing Ltd (LGMFL), along with the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA), said in a statement that the choice will be announced in October, and implementation will be complete by the end of 2014.

The price-setting process, also known as the fix, has been used by producers, consumers and investors to trade gold and value their shares since 1919…MORE (Reuters)

The Perth Mint is pleased to unveil the 2015 designs for Australia’s official Gold, Silver & Platinum Bullion Coin Program comprising the Australian Kangaroo, Kookaburra, Koala and Platypus series. The program also includes new Australian Lunar coins celebrating the 2015 Year of the Goat – the eighth animal in the 12-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac. Struck from 99.99% pure gold, 99.9% pure silver and 99.95% pure platinum, Australian bullion coins made at The Perth Mint for over a quarter of a century have a reputation for being the best quality in the world.MORE: perthmintbullion.com

Tiny particles of gold could hold the key to treating the most common form of brain cancer, scientists have said. The ‘Trojan horse’ treatment involves smuggling tiny nanoparticles of gold into the brain to kill tumour cells.

The ground-breaking technique could eventually be used to treat glioblastoma multiforme, which is the most common and aggressive brain tumour in adults, and notoriously difficult to treat, University of Cambridge researchers said…MORE (Belfast Telegraph)